Vignette 137: A living memorial

In the years following the Second World War (1939–1945), students from the Adelaide Teachers College felt a need to commemorate their friends who served and died in the war. They envisioned a memorial that broke conventions, a living memorial that wasn’t bound to place.

Out of their vision came the Adelaide Teachers College War Memorial: a collection of original artworks by contemporary Australian artists. The artworks were to be displayed throughout the College with a plaque and a roll of honour bearing the names of 522 College men and women with war service. In 1948 a war memorial art fund was made through an altered constitution. From 1949 to 1961 each student was levied two shillings per year—teachers contributed too. The collection continued into the early 1960s and was displayed with the plaque in what is now the Hartley Building.

By 1961, the Memorial collection comprised 36 artworks: 13 oil paintings, 10 watercolour paintings and 13 prints. Since then, more works have been added. However, owing to organisational restructures and renovations over the years, some works have gone missing. Those that remain, including the Arthur Boyd Eroded Creek Bed, pictured, are in the University’s care, and the roll of honour is kept safely in the University Library special collections. 

The University of Adelaide: 150 Years of Making History.  Preserving a legacy.  p.184